TPOP 108

Chapter 108

****

The story, short if you will, long if you prefer, paused for a moment.

"...Thank you for telling me."

It wasn't shocking news to Diana. As she offered her thanks in a dry voice, the other person let out a small laugh.

"Seeing how you don't seem particularly surprised, I suppose you already knew about your background. I expected as much."

"People like me have to remind ourselves who we are every minute, every second."

"What kind of person are you?"

One who could not see ahead. One for whom their own small darkness was the entirety of the world.

Yet there was something peculiar about the question that came flying.

Diana, leaning back against the large cushion, slowly lowered her head. As she blinked, something thin and soft brushed against her eyelashes. A pale, grayish cloth covered her from her eyebrows to the bridge of her nose.

Pale, grayish... Diana repeated the phrase, finding it unfamiliar.

She couldn't remember the last time she'd used a word to describe color. Diana slowly raised her hand and touched the fabric draped over her eyes. The long, horizontal cloth wrapped around her head once and was tied at the back of her neck. Light from outside seeped through the thin fabric.

'Light...'

Could she be dreaming?

The person observing Diana closely asked.

"When did they say you could have that bandage removed?"

"...Not yet."

A small voice escaped between parted lips.

"They said light mustn't reach it... Dr. Zoe specifically requested it."

"I see. You must follow the doctor's orders. It's best to be careful for now."

A rustling sound signaled him rising from his seat. Diana turned her head, and he replied as if to say it was nothing.

"I've kept you company too long, haven't I? I'll step out now. Rest well, Diana. We depart tomorrow morning."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"Elliot is sufficient."

Diana hesitated briefly before bowing her head. The other party, seemingly unwilling to insist on the title, quietly opened the door and left the room. He probably wore a faint smile.

Light footsteps faded down the hallway.

Diana waited until the hallway fell silent before pulling back the covers. Until yesterday, her legs wouldn't move, but today she could shift them little by little. Diana straightened her stiff knees and took one step after another. The room was silent, not even a small rustle, but the path she needed to take was clearly visible. Only one spot in the space she occupied was unusually bright.

That was undoubtedly light. Diana slowly approached it. One step, then another. She moved forward, her hands instinctively reaching out, feeling the air ahead.

Finally, her fingertips touched something. She brushed it aside to find the rough grain of a window frame.

The window was open. A gentle breeze tickled Diana's hair. Instead of stifling heat, the warm air carried the crisp scent of autumn.

Just this morning, Zoe had warned her earnestly.

"It'll take a while longer for your functions to fully return. Just in case, be careful not to expose yourself to sunlight..."

But Doctor.

How could she resist this temptation?

Diana brought both hands to the back of her head. After feeling the knot a few times, the string quickly loosened. Feeling the cloth covering her eyes slip down to her chin, Diana closed her eyelids. Her heart pounded uncontrollably.

Seven years. It had been seven years. For seven years, Diana had longed for her homeland as much as she had dreamed of this very moment.

When her heartbeat reached its peak, Diana gently opened her eyes.

The first sensation was intense pain. Bright light pierced through her lashes, stabbing her corneas. Yet Diana neither shielded her eyes with her hands nor squinted. Instead, she tensed her eyelids and forced them open wider.

"Ah..."

A helpless gasp escaped her.

Everything before her was blurred, as if shrouded in fog. Yet light and shadow were undeniably present. The shapes of objects were faintly discernible.

She could see.

She could see.

For now, it was merely light and shadow, but she would gradually be able to see more. Diana's mouth gradually twisted.

Seven years of frustration, despair, and sorrow surged back up her throat like a moan, threatening to burst forth. Diana gripped the window frame with both hands and wept like a beast.

The wish she had prayed for countless times—to see with these eyes, even for a single moment, whether in hell or paradise—had finally been granted.

Moreover, this was not Karman. Far from that dreadful place, in a strange land, she had finally opened her eyes.

A new world. A new life. No longer a dream.

"Huuu..."

Diana was finally free. The long-awaited world of light embraced her fully.

****

11. Utopia

Thirteen winters ago.

The fortune of the Kingdom of Dortes, blessed by nature, with its abundant water and fertile soil, once called the Garden of the Gods, had run its course. The Karman Empire shook the kingdom's resolve with an incomprehensible declaration of war, crushed the southern border defenses, and marched straight to the capital.

Rumors spread that the Imperial Emperor had chosen a policy of expansion to quell public outrage over a horrific murder within the royal family. Dortes was the Empire's first prey.

The Queen of Dortes hastily conscripted troops to resist the Empire. Yet it was a battle lost from the start. The tide turned rapidly, and within less than two months, the walls of Dortes Castle crumbled.

Rain fell. A torrential downpour so fierce it obscured everything within an inch. A man ran through the rain. His silver iron armor clanked with every movement.

In his arms was a small girl, barely ten years old. Clutching the cold armor tightly, she whimpered softly.

"Daddy..."

"Is it stuffy? Diana."

The sound of military boots chasing them gradually faded. A nearby tree, struck by lightning, had fallen, blocking the path they had come from.

The man set the child down from his arms and sat her on the tree trunk. The girl, wrapped snugly in her father's cloak, had not a single strand of hair dampened. The swaying branches overhead shielded her from the rain falling down.

There were still elementals left.

"The elementals are restless, Daddy."

The girl whispered softly.

"Yes."

The man's reply came in a rough, cracked voice.

The spring of Valestega had been brutally trampled under the boots of the imperial army, but the spirits that had escaped from there now hid in the earth beneath their feet, in the falling raindrops, in the damp air they breathed. But with the spring destroyed, the remaining spirits could not endure long.

Spirits were beings born and sustained only in the purest, most pristine nature. Deprived of their sanctuary, they gradually lost their strength and faded away. This downpour was the final cry of spirits who sensed their fate.

The man, who had been tilting his head back for a while, slowly lowered his gaze. Lime-green eyes, identical to those of his beloved woman, stared intently at him.

There wasn't a single mysterious corner about this child. Her uncut, wheat-colored hair shimmered even in the darkness, and her plump cheeks glistened with moisture. Beneath the cloak her father had draped over her, she wore a leaf dress woven by the spirits.

"Our little fairy."

"Mmm."

Her innocent eyes brimmed with pure trust in her father. He caught his breath and stroked her cheek.

"Just a little further, and the knights will be waiting for you. We just need to get past this side path."

"Knights?"

"Yes. Daddy's friends."

The girl's eyes immediately sparkled with anticipation.

The child had never met any other humans besides her parents and her own reflection in the spring. To her, humans were simply a race as beautiful and kind as her parents. She did not understand that the very reason they had to flee so urgently now was because of humans.

He never imagined he’d have to send this untainted child out into the world so soon. Deep regret washed over the man’s face.

“I wish I could have taught you more.”

“……?”

“Sooner, more…”

Even knowing it was impossible because of the vow, his heart ached. He knew how cruel the world would be for a child who believed a perfect utopia was all there was, starting today.

So even now, he had to tell her one more thing. Kneeling on the muddy ground, the man met his daughter's eyes.

"Listen carefully, Diana. The world you're about to enter will be different from anything you've known. Everything, from one to ten, will be different."